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An old phone that used to be the best phone around

Back in the heyday at school having a mobile phone made you a cool kid. When the Ericsson GH 688 came out I had saved enough money from my paper round to get one. This instantly moved me up from average nobody to top boy on the play ground.

For its time it was very compact and light (160 grams and 130 x 49 x 23 mm). It had a black shell with a small screen. On top was a very tall ariel that when my got older people used to laugh at. The screen was a three line display that made it easier to read than other phones of its era. It has a handy LED feature that flashes rapidly when you have missed a call or you have received a text message. The phone is very basic with a small list of features including messages. contacts and call history. Your were able to hold up to 99 contacts on the phone which was ample memory for me back then. I loved the fact it had around 5 different Polyphonic ringtones. I would spend ages choosing which one to have with my friends.

The phones best aspect was the call quality. Calls came through clear and crisp with a good projection. There was no general interference and calls were easily heard. Even comparing to todays standard of call quality the Ericsson GH 688 would not be out of its depth.

The phone also has a good battery life. I would play around on it all the time and find I would get days before having to charge. Officially it has a standby time of 96 hours.

As phones go this one was particulary robust. I dropped this on a number of occasions with little damage. Although after three years of constant use I did find that the screw were loosening making the phone less solid.

The phone has now been discontinued but I have seen a few people still selling these on Ebay. I originally paid £85 for the handset and it lasted a long time and well worth the money.

Being released in 1995 the mobile phone industry has gone on leaps and bounds leaving this phone a bit of a joke. However, in its day it made me feel like a superstar.